Faith in Lilith
by Arrowned
Summary: PRMF: Chip chats with Vida during the vampire situation.  Things don't go exactly as he planned.


**Faith in Lilith**

_Rating_: M (cursing and sexual situations)  
_Synopsis_: Chip chats with Vida during the vampire situation. Things don't go exactly as he planned.  
_Disclaimer_: Not owned by me.  
_Timeline_: Alternate ending to Stranger Within pt. II  
_Note_: This isn't my normal fare, but I figured I'd try it anyways. Idea came to me after a related discussion with Kikos and Typical. Thanks to Kikos, Angel Negra, and Artemis for helping with the name, and Kikos for beta-reading.

* * *

Chip walked through Rootcore, heading for the outside patio, his thoughts a confused and worried jumble. The other Rangers had gone home some time ago, while he stayed around and did as much research as he could on vampires and their weaknesses. He hadn't managed to get much work done. 

Vida was currently imprisoned in the patio. The Rangers had first thought about trapping her in a prison cylinder inside Rootcore where they could keep an eye on her, but an energy shield around the patio would keep her from leaving, and this way she wouldn't be able to trick anyone into helping her escape. In order to keep her relatively pain-free, they had also cast a night cloak spell.

"Knock knock," Chip said as he reached the patio doorway and poked his head out. Knowing that it was only an hour or two past dusk made the moonlight-filtered scenery look disconcerting, but it was necessary.

Vida looked up at him from her casual position on the swinging bench. "I someone finally decided to be brave and chat with little Ms. Vampire, huh?"

Chip started. Since the episode at Rockporium earlier that day, the tainted Ranger had been trying to bite everyone in her line of sight. For her to suddenly act civilized was unexpected. "Um, yeah. Wanted to see how you were doing."

Vida shrugged. "Fine enough. Have a seat," she said, patting the surface of the bench beside her.

"I don't think that's such a good id--"

"Chip," she cut him off, rolling her eyes. "We both know you've got garlic in every pocket in that uniform. "Stop acting like a dork."

He glared in response, but walked in her direction. He passed through the energy shield without issue--it had been set up to allow everyone but Vida free access--and sat down beside her. There was a minute of silence, slow seat swinging, and thumb-twiddling as he tried to figure out what to talk about with a friend-turned-savage.

"I'm okay," Vida said, dispelling the silence.

"Huh?"

"You said earlier that you wanted to see how I was doing."

"Oh. But... you weren't fine earlier. What happened?"

Vida played with the hem of her shirt. "I'm getting better at resisting Necrolai's control, I think. She just wanted a servant, but she used a normal human-affecting spell. Made me go vamp-twitching at first, but we all know you need more powerful magic than that to mind control one of us for longer than a few hours."

Chip nodded, having spent enough time during Udonna's lessons to recognize that fact. "So now we just have to hunt Necrolai down and--"

A warm and not unpleasant touch started traveling across his back, underneath his shirt. Chip's mind shut down for a few seconds beneath the sensation, before he was finally able to regain his senses. He whipped his eyes over to Vida, wondering what the hell she was doing.

Vida's expression hadn't changed; she was looking in the direction of the back door into Rootcore, but her gaze was unfocused, and a slight frown graced her visage. She seemed to be having some pretty heavy thoughts, even as she was doing the totally un-Vida-like exercise of gently rubbing his back.

"Vee," he started, not sure where to go with this. He eventually decided on being direct "What are you doing?"

She shook her in response, not answering. As if she didn't know what the answer was to give. Meanwhile, her fingertips were still trailing fire up and down his back, and Chip found his hidden crush for her and his worry over the situation fighting for dominance. He closed his eyes and breathed deeply, trying to center himself, but it wasn't doing much good.

"Chip," she said suddenly. "Why is this whole thing so wrong?"

Chip, fairly sure she was talking about the vampire thing and scared that she actually _liked_ the idea of sucking blood, was about to speak up when Vida did another unanticipated maneuver. She scooted closer, wrapping her left arm around his waist, and, with her free hand, started toying with his own.

"Vida, stop it." He was amazed he had managed to say that with a relatively high level of command tone, considering the way his insides were burning. Naturally, as she always tended to do with his commands, vampire or not, she ignored him.

"I'm serious," she continued, as she laid her head on his shoulder. "The daytime thing is the only really bad part, and I'm starting to be able to deal with that anyways."

Chip was starting to go into mental overload at the sheer craziness of the situation when he finally realized what was happening. "You're _seducing_ me and you're wondering what's wrong about being a vampire? God, Vida, you're... you're not Vida anymore! That's what's wrong!"

"That's not true," she said rather calmly as she let go of his hand and placed hers on his thigh. "I'm still the same Vida. Just because I like the idea of having more power doesn't change who I am."

"The old Vida wouldn't be five seconds from trailing kisses down my neck for no goddamn reason," Chip replied, starting to get angry at the situation he had put himself in. He had further reason to curse himself when Vida just chuckled at his reply, and started doing exactly what he claimed she would.

"The vampire thing doesn't actually change who you are, you know," she explained in between kisses. "Yeah, I probably wouldn't just seduce any random person." She started gently sucking on his skin with each kiss. A chill went up Chip's spine. "But you're not just some random person. All the vampire thing does is bring out base desires more."

To seemingly prove this, she started rubbing her still hand across Chip's thigh as she continued to plant tiny kisses on his skin. His head started spinning slightly to match the almost painful tightening of his pants, and several tears began spilling from his shut eyes.

"...why the hell are you crying?" she asked, honestly confused.

"Damnit, I don't know," he replied. He was embarrassed at it, really; he hadn't cried for any real reason in over a decade. And he wanted to lie and claim that it was just the smell of the garlic in his pockets, but that was a bunk lie since garlic doesn't make people cry anyways. Though that brought up the quick thought of why the garlic wasn't affecting her at all...

Meanwhile, he didn't want to admit the truth either: that she was slowly and successfully convincing him, despite everything he had learned throughout his life of the evil of vampires. The implications that he'd throw his life away just to continue traveling this road were terrifying.

She tilted his head towards her and kissed him directly. The gentle warmth of her lips and the resulting near fireworks in his mind melted every single barrier he had remaining, and he absolutely hated himself for it.

Desperate to stop the inevitable, he quietly asked, "What about the planet? We're supposed to be its protectors..."

"Who said I'm turning evil? That's why I'm resisting Necrolai anyways; she's a bitch."

He sort of smiled at that. "And turning others into vampires?"

She kissed him again, and then, while beginning to fondle him through his jeans, very obviously planted her lips to his neck, near his jugular. "There has to be a downside somewhere, doesn't there?"

He didn't reply audibly. He simply sighed, tilted his head sideways to allow her better access, and prayed. To the gods of light--or of darkness--he didn't know.


End file.
